John Godfrey 1825-1893

A Brief History of John and Mary Pittaway Godfrey

By Flo Munson

Grandfather John Godfrey was born in Hanbury, England on Oct. 30, 1825. He was the son of Thomas and Elizabeth Ainge Godfrey. He was the oldest in a family of six children—five boys and one girl.

As a younger boy he worked on farms driving horses. He would drive from three to five head of horses at one time. He was a good worker and a dependable worker.

Grandmother Mary Pittaway Godfrey was born May 1, 1823 in Broitwich, England. She was the daughter of Mark and Ann Willis Pittaway. Grandmother had five brothers and two sisters. Her brothers were all seamen—they loved being on the water. Her parents had no desire to come to America. They said the Church of England was good enough for them.

On Sept. 15, 1843 Grandfather and Grandmother were married. They had nine children—George (my father), Thomas, Joseph, Mary Ann, Lucy, John E., Emma, Sarah and Catherine. Grandmother had one daughter previously to marrying Grandfather, Aunt Letitia, who remained with her grandparents Mark and Ann Willis Pittaway. She never came to America.

Grandfather and Grandmother were converts to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They were baptized in 1848. As soon as word got around that they had joined the Mormons, people shunned them. Grandfather was told to report to his employer who gave him notice to leave the Mormons or find employment elsewhere. The same thing happened time and time again. He was well known in this area and wherever he went it was the same. He worked for a short time on the railroad and finally secured work in the salt works. This was very hard work. Grandmother helped by making cheese in their home. She would make as many as 150 cheeses in one season. She raised peppermint in her garden. She would take the leaves to the factory to have the juice extracted and would receive several bottles of juice in return, which she would use for sickness among the families. Grandmother was a mid-wife and delivered many, many babies both in England and after she came to Utah.

Grandfather’s mother, Elizabeth Ainge Godfrey, accepted the gospel soon after Grandfather joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Grandfather wished very much to come to America. Grandmother thought they could practice their religion and still remain in England. However, they were persecuted constantly and finally Grandmother realized they must come to America where they could live the religion of their choice. She had great fear of crossing the water. Their presiding Elder told Grandfather to send his oldest son, (my father, George Godfrey) and that when a year had passed he was sure he would have no trouble persuading Grandmother to cross the ocean. This was true—by the time a year had passed Grandmother was ready to go through water or fire to be with her oldest son.

My father was only 16 years of age at this time. It was finally decided he would come to America first and prepare a home for his parents and brothers and sisters when they arrived in Utah at a later date. He left England May 3, 1861 on a sailing vessel called "Monarch of the Sea". He walked, from the Missouri River to Salt Lake City. He arrived in Salt Lake City in Sept, 1861. He lived with Grandfathers brother, Uncle Richard Godfrey (whom grandfather had assisted in coming to America previously) for a short time. He worked for Bishop Proctor in the 14th Ward. He hauled logs and rock from the canyons to help build the Temple and Tabernacle.

After Father left England, Grandfather assisted in organizing three branches near Wichbowl. He was a local Elder. One day as he was talking in Church he suddenly began talking in a foreign tongue. It frightened him, as he knew not what he was saying. A lady in the audience interpreted and said he was blessed with the gift of tongues. She said that through his faithfulness a way would be opened and money provided and he and his wife and family would be able to come to America within a years time. At this particular time, this seemed impossible, but a way was opened and money provided and in May 1862 they took passage on a sail boat, the William Tapscot. They spent seven weeks on the ocean. The ship had 24 sailors, 16 white men and 8 negroes. During the crossing, one man died and was buried at sea. His body was wrapped in a blanket and put in a waterproof bag, strapped to a plank and lowered into the water feet first. They landed in New York and took a train to St. Louis, Mo. They went by steam boat 500 miles up the Missouri River to Florence, Nebraska. On this trip a man died. They pulled up to the bank, near a grove of trees and buried him.

They crossed the plains with ox team in the Henry Miller Company. There were 665 persons, 100 wagons with four ox teams to each wagon in the company. Each night 6 men would guard the 800 oxen to prevent Indians from stampeding them.

They arrived in the Salt Lake Valley Oct. 10, 1862, five long months after leaving their homeland. They found my father had built a little log house in the 10th Ward in Salt Lake City and had made table and chairs from logs he had hauled from the canyons. It was all completed. This was unusual, as most immigrants had nothing waiting for them at the end of their trail.

They lived in Salt Lake City that winter and Grandfather and his sons sawed wood for 50 cents each per day to earn a livlihood (sic) for the family.

That fall General Conner along with approximately 500 men camped where Fort Douglas is today. He had made a threat to take President Brigham Young dead or alive. When the Saints heard this, the brethren (sic) gathered by the hundreds at Brigham Young's office. Lot Smith and his minutemen came armed for battle. When General Conner received word he became alarmed and informed the Saints that his men were merely there on dress parade. The Saints said they were there merely on dress parade also. In January they went to Cache Valley to fight Chief Bear Hunter and his tribe at Battle Creek on Bear River. During this fierce Indian conflict many men and women were killed. The Indians were finally subdued in this battle and the Saints lived in peace.

In the Spring of 1863, the Godfrey family moved to Chalk Creek (now Coalville) and rented a farm. It was here that their youngest daughter Catherine was born. They planted, wheat, barley, oats, etc. A severe frost in September took the entire crop. The Godfrey family then moved to Wellsville in Cache Valley, They remained there only two months and moved on to Mendon where they lived in a cellar for the winter. The snow was heavy and every morning it was necessary for Grandfather to dig his way to the surface.

In the spring, they built a little house 14 feet square which had a dirt roof and floor. This house and city lot were later traded for a yoke of oxen when the family moved to Clarkston.

It was the Spring of 1865 when Grandfather first went to Clarkston. It was a small settlement at this time. Grandfather planted a vegetable garden and a crop of grain. He was the first man to plow in this vicinity. In May he moved his wife and family to Clarkston. They camped in the open for several weeks while he built a small home. That fall two companies of soldiers, who were on their way to Idaho to fight Indians, camped on the public square near their home. They bought forty dollars worth of vegetables from Grandfather's own garden. The Godfrey children attended school about three months that winter.

The summer of 1886 almost the entire population of Clarkston moved to Smithfield because of hostile Indians. The men returned occasionally to care for their crops, but made preparations to spend the winter in Smithfield. However, President Brigham Young sent word for them to return to Clarkston and stay in their homes.

During the summer an Indian had been killed in Mendon, which caused more trouble for the Saints. A white man was accused of killing the Indian. President Young came to Logan to attend Conference that fall and prophesied that the hand of the man who had killed the Indian would wither and by this sign the people would know who the guilty man was. Grandfather and his sons, along with many others, saw this prophecy fulfilled.

A fort was built in Clarkston to protect settlers from the Indians. While living in this fort, a schoolhouse and meetinghouse were built.

Grasshoppers and crickets were very bad during those first few years and many times the small amount of grain that was harvested would also be frozen. They harvested the grain with cradles and cut the hay by hand.

In the summer of 1866, tragedy entered the Godfrey home when their son, Joseph, only 17 years of age, was accidently drowned in Bear River.

Hampton Bridge on Bear River in Box Elder County was the nearest store in those days. It was ten miles from Clarkston. Men would take turns going by twos to the store for supplies.

Grandmother kept her small home spotlessly clean. She was a good cook and many remember the red plum pudding which only Grandmother could make in her special way. She had piercing black eyes which would look through you. She liked her bed made real high—she had a straw tick with a feather bed on top. Grandchildren liked to watch and when Grandmother wasn't looking they would run and leap on her high bed. In spite of the scoldings they got when they were caught doing this forbidden stunt, they still were unable to resist the temptation.

At first they used candles for light, but finally they bought a small lamp which held a cup of coal oil. Each morning Grandmother saw that the lamp was filled, and the chimney washed and put on a shelf ready for night.

Both Grandfather and Grandmother loved to attend church meetings. Grandfather was most liberal where church donations were needed and gave freely. Grandfather was a Seventy and a ward teacher for many years. They took out their endowments on Feb. 8, 1869.

Grandfather was personally acquainted with Martin Harris, one of three witnesses to the Book of Mormon. He heard him bear his testimony many, many times.

Grandfather assisted his parents in coming to America. His father was a shoemaker. They lived in Clarkston and are both buried in the Clarkston cemetery.

Grandmother loved freshly scrubbed floors and was known to re-scrub her floor if she could see the faintest smear.

Matches were scarce and men would rub flint together to make a spark. In this way they made fires. Anyone seeing smoke coming from a neighbors chimney would rush to this home with fire shovels to get hot coals to start their own fire.

Grandfather and Grandmother knew a lady by the name of Mrs. Petersen who lived in Wellsville. She told them of her younger sister, Olina Tralseth, who lived in Norway and who wanted very much to come to America. This was in the days of polygamy and Grandfather and Grandmother talked this over and finally it was decided that Grandfather would send money for Olina to come to America with the idea that he would marry her after she arrived. Grandfather said it was ‘sort of like buying a pig in a sack’. When she finally arrived she was a backward, shy, little person, speaking no English. Grandfather kept his promise and married her on Feb. 14, 1875. She was 16 years younger than he. For a time she lived in the same house with Grandmother Mary and Grandfather. Grandmother Mary was a meticulous housekeeper and it was hard to have another woman share her home. Finally Grandmother Mary told Grandfather it would be best if he took his new bride and moved into a different house. Grandfather never lived with Grandmother Mary again. At first he and Olina lived in Mendon, but later came back to Clarkston where Grandfather homesteaded 80 acres of land. They had five children (two died in infancy). Olina was known as "Grandma Leeney".

Grandmother Mary lived alone with her daughter Catherine who had lost her husband (Richard Jardine) and who had one small daughter, Katie. Their home had a thicket of red plum trees in the back. In front was green gage plum trees. During fruit season everyone visiting Grandmother was treated to her plums. She raised chickens and had nice gardens. She loved to quilt. She never owned a machine but she pieced quilts by hand. At holiday time, she loved to have all of her family home for meals—many have fond memories of her famous English Plum Pudding. She would trade a cup of yeast for a cup of flour and in this way kept in bread. In the fall grandchildren would all gather to help get in the squash and knew there would be special treats for them at the end of the days work.

Grandfather had many fine head of cattle. In February 1893 his cattle broke loose and in trying to round them back into the corral by himself he became cold and wet as if was an exceedingly bitter, windy day. He contracted pneumonia which developed into double pneumonia. He realized he was going to die. He asked someone to get in touch with Grandmother Mary to see if he could come to her house to spend his last days, but she thought it would be best if he didn't. He died in the little log house, which he and Grandma Leeney called home, on Feb. 17, 1893 at the age of 67 years.

Grandmother Mary had a heart condition and suffered from dropsey (sic) for many months before she passed away on June 15, 1901 at the age of 78. They had no means of caring for sickness and death as they do now. Her body was placed in a home-made casket and because the odor was so strong from her being sick for such a long period of time they were unable to have the casket inside the church house. They left it in a white top buggy just outside the church and raised a window next to the casket during the funeral.

After Grandfather’s death, Grandma Leeney took her three children and moved to Teasdale to be near her sister. Soon, however, she returned to her little log home in Clarkston. She spoke little English and it must have been most difficult for her so far away from her people in Norway. In 1914 she became very ill and was taken to her daughter Aunt Marie Brindley's home in Salt Lake City where she died after being bedfast for six weeks. She had stomach cancer. She passed away June 5, 1914 at 73 years of age.